Schleese prides itself on working with many equestrian influencers around the globe to bring you the latest insights into various issues on and around saddle fitting. Each session is only a half hour in length and will expose you to opinions, facts, scientific discourse and perhaps cause to consider a paradigm shift when it comes to saddle fit!
- April 6th @ 10am: Sophia Chavonelle https://www.instagram.com/sophia.chavonelle/
Sophia Chavonelle is a USDF Bronze and Silver Medalist based in San Diego, California. She competed actively as an FEI Junior and Young Rider before moving across the country to become assistant to Olympic Silver Medalist Sabine Schut-Kery in 2021. While her heart will always be with the east coast, California has proved to be an immeasurably important step for taking Sophia’s professional riding career to the next level. Sophia has been riding in Schleese saddles for her whole life. She is currently riding her horse Jetson EP in a Let’s Dance. This will be Sophia’s first livestream with Jochen.
- April 6th and April 20th at 12pm: Shelby Dennis – https://www.instagram.com/sdequus
https://milestoneequestrian.ca/shelby-dennis
Shelby Dennis is a lifelong equestrian residing on the West Coast of British Columbia, Canada. She is an IAABC certified Equine Behaviour Consultant and has done extensive post-secondary studies in the equine science field, in addition to dabbling in journalism and human psychology. She is the author of “The Other Side of Horsemanship” and is a repeat guest with Schleese.
- April 10 @ 6:30pm: Leira – https://www.instagram.com/mane.man.mac/
This dynamic 15-year-old was focused on saddleseat, working with Saddlebreds and Morgans for about 6 years before adventuring into western. She is very interested in the biomechanics of horses, pressure points in horses, and general rehab possibilities.
- April 11 @ 12:00pm: The Seat Doctor, Mark Lloyd-Fox via the Schleese Facebook and YouTube channel. https://www.youtube.com/c/schleesesaddlery
Mark is a lifelong equestrian, rider and trainer based in South Africa, widely known as the Seat Doctor. In our upcoming livestream with him, he will be bringing us the trainer’s point of view in this in-depth conversation relating to saddle fit and biomechanics of horse and rider. To watch our first livestream with Mark Lloyd-Fox, please visit the link below. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LWVPNlgKElc&t=4s
- April 11 @ 4:15pm: Mia Hickey – https://www.instagram.com/_riding_romeo_/
Mia has always loved animals and has been riding for 9 years. She started out in both English and western, then fell in love with jumping.- riding and competing in hunters, jumpers and equitation. She is a working student at a hunter jumper barn and a member of her university’s equestrian show team. She is also pursuing an Equine Welfare certificate through Guelph University’s online program.
- April 12th @ 12:30pm: Hannah – https://www.instagram.com/silversnaffles/
Hannah (silversnaffles) is an English polo groom and equine manager based in Fredrikstad, Norway. After graduating with a Film Studies degree from the University of Warwick, she took on a social media internship at The Norwegian Polo Club which soon evolved into her becoming their groom and equine manager! With four horses and ponies of her own, she has always been unapologetically obsessed with horses and how to improve their wellbeing.
- April 19th @ 5:15pm: Carly C. – https://www.instagram.com/c.c.equinetherapy/
Carly is a young professional based out of Northern Ontario. Carly is a Registered member with the IAAMB : International Association of Animal Massage and Bodywork and is Certified in both Equine Massage and Equine Craniosacral Technique. Carly has a passion for rehabilitation and building healthy relationships with her horses. She has a special interest in “reactive” horses and works with owners to figure out why their horse may be showing lameness or behavioral issues, usually associated with pain.
- April 20th @ 3:45pm: Emily Ferreira – https://www.instagram.com/emzequestrian/
Emily has been riding for 15 years, starting off with western riding but soon found a love for the English world and started to show and enter the hunter/jumper ring. She currently owns an American quarter horse who’s 18 years old. She was a western pleasure show horse who is now slowly entering into the English world.
Date to be determined
- Meaghan Monahan – https://www.instagram.com/sassy_appys/
Meaghan grew up in Massachusetts. The culture of horsemanship modeled for her was science and health- veterinarians, saddle fitters, massage therapy, chiropractors, farriers, and taking care of the horse from the ground up. She interned with a sports medicine veterinary clinic and worked at SmartPak Equine’s only retail location. Meaghan went out west to Colorado State University for Equine Sciences in 2009 and got a crash course in western culture, learning from the wisdom of real cowboys and how a well fitting saddle was crucial in keeping a horse and rider both safe and healthy. Competitive Trail Rides (NATRC organization) have been a welcome home. Meaghan qualified for ApHC World Championships the last few years and hopes to go this year. Her organization with Appaloosas is classified as an educational nonprofit (501c3), founded in the memory of Clyde Al Maxey. (www.maxeyappys.com), and her platforms of TikTok (@SassyAppys) and Instagram (@Sassy_Appys) reach people around the globe.
- Zoeyhttps://www.instagram.com/zbcequestrian/– date TBD
Bio: Zoey is an occupational therapy student with her own horse which she enjoys hacking.
- Emily McDormanhttps://www.instagram.com/equine.love.eventing/– date TBD
Emily has been riding for the past eight years, primarily in eventing. She grew up in Washington state but moved to Colorado for school last year, to major in Equine Science with a minor in business. She loves all things horses and is interested in all aspects of their care. As a member of the United States Pony Club she started learning about horse care early in her riding career and has recently added positive reinforcement to her training initiatives.
- Emily Settonhttps://www.instagram.com/emilysetton/– date TBD
Only 26, Emily has been riding for 22 years. She began her horse adventures in the jumper community, moved to a different state and began working with a dressage trainer. She joined the US Pony Clubs (USPC) eventually testing up into to the national levels. For 5 summers, she was a working student for a well-known trainer in the Chicago area with expertise in both the dressage and jumper worlds. When she first began working with a dressage trainer, she was introduced to Schleese and the science behind our saddles. Spending some time at WEF 2021, she was once again struck by how saddle fit was so often overlooked. Currently Emily is a 4th year graduate student and PhD candidate at UW-Madison.
Finally our Monthly Q&A is this Thursday April 6th at 5PM EDT and our Livestream Lecture is scheduled for April 20th at 5PM EDT.
About Jochen Schleese and Schleese Saddlery Service Ltd.
Jochen Schleese got his certification as Master Saddler in Germany at the age of 22 and came to Canada in 1986 to establish and register the trade of saddlery in Ontario, Canada. With over 100 different models designed over the years, Schleese Saddlery Service Ltd is the world leading manufacturer of saddles designed for women, specializing in the unique anatomical requirements of female riders. Schleese authorized representatives provide diagnostic saddle fit analysis and saddle fitting services across the globe to maintain optimal saddle fit to horse and rider and together they have enriched the lives of over 200,00 horses.
He and his company have been the recipients of numerous business and industry awards over the years and have been featured in the Wall Street Journal , twice on the Discovery Channel as well as PBS. He has also won a “Winnie” award for his DVD “Beyond the 9 points of saddle fit” as best educational video in 2017 at the EQUUS Film Festival in NYC as well as one in 2019 for best educational book for his best-seller: Suffering in Silence: The Saddle Fit Link to Physical and Psychological Trauma in Horses.
He is a regular guest lecturer at various equine and veterinary colleges around the world.
For more information about Jochen Schleese and Schleese Saddlery Ltd. please go to www.saddlesforwomen.com or https://saddlefit4lifeacademy.com/
For more information contact:
Marie-Claire Duquette, Marketing Manager marie-claire@schleese.com